"We are a nation that has a government, not the other way around."

Thanks to Walter Williams for pointing me to this from Mark Steyn.  It’s a speech he gave at Hillsdale College, aka the Ford of higher education.

Lots of good stuff in both of the these links.  Highly recommended.

Steyn references a great Reagan quote: “We are a nation that has a government, not the other way around.”

Another great quote from a European writer:  “I have never learned to fight for my freedom. I was only good at enjoying it.”

Which brings this insight from Steyn into focus:

“Live free or die!” sounds like a battle cry: We’ll win this thing or die trying, die an honorable death. But in fact it’s something far less dramatic: It’s a bald statement of the reality of our lives in the prosperous West. You can live as free men, but, if you choose not to, your society will die.